What happened: The Astros held a 5-4 lead with two outs in the ninth, but David Ortiz tagged Luke Gregerson for an RBI triple to tie the score. Big Papi then finished Houston off in the 11th with an RBI double after Michael Feliz issued a two-out walk and wild pitch.

What happened: A brutal game from Carlos Gomez helped sink the Astros. With the Astros up 9-8 with two outs and a runner on first in the seventh, Gomez called off right fielder George Springer on a fly ball by Ryan Hanigan. Gomez then paused, and the ball dropped between them, allowing the tying run to score. Mookie Betts followed with an RBI triple for the eventual winning run. Gomez also lost a fly ball in the sun during the second inning that led to a run and struck out to end the game.

In a curious move, manager A.J. Hinch left starter Dallas Keuchel - who had thrown upwards of 100 pitches and was going through the order for the fourth time - to face righthanded hitter Ian Desmond with a runner on first with one out in the eighth inning of a 2-2 game. Desmond promptly broke the tie with a two-run homer that gave the Rangers the lead for good.

What happened: With one out in the ninth, Will Harris gave up consecutive doubles to Stephen Vogt and Coco Crisp to tie the score. Oakland then won it with a two-out rally in the 10th off Pat Neshek and Tony Sipp, with Josh Reddick's infield single scoring the winning run.

What happened: This arguably was the most brutal loss of the year. The Astros were dominated for eight innings by Justin Verlander, but managed to scratch across two runs off him in the ninth to take the lead. But in the bottom of the ninth, then-closer Will Harris issued a two-out walk and gave up consecutive singles that tied the score, with Alex Bregman's error moving the winning run to third. Jose Iglesias then beat Harris to the bag at first for an infield single that handed the Astros a crushing loss.

What happened: These all seemed like the same game, as the Astros dropped the final three games in the series and scored only one run each night. In the four-game set at home, they managed a measly five runs in losing three of four.

What happened: Carlos Gomez's final start as an Astro was disastrous, as he misplayed balls on consecutive at-bats in the fifth inning that led to two runs and the difference in a loss to the lowly Twins. He was designated for assignment two days later, ending an underwhelming one-year stint in Houston.

What happened: While the Astros' pitching was subpar on this day, a brutal missed call by home-plate umpire Jim Joyce loomed large in the final outcome. With Cleveland up 2-1 in the third, Joyce somehow missed a David Paulino pitch bouncing and going off Lonnie Chisenhall's bat for what should've been a foul ball. Instead, he ruled it a wild pitch and two runs came in to score, changing the game's complexion. To add further insult, Joyce tossed Astros manager A.J. Hinch when he justifiably came out to argue the botched call.

What happened: The Rangers lost 15 of 19 games to the Astros, and eight of those defeats were by one run. None was more emblematic of how Houston was snakebit than this game. With one out in the ninth, Ken Giles struck out Rougned Odor, but he reached on a wild pitch. After an Odor steal and another strikeout, Elvis Andrus crushed a Giles fastball to Tal's Hill for a two-out RBI triple that knotted the score. Jurickson Profar then laced Giles' next pitch into left field for the go-ahead run and cap another punch-in-the-gut loss for the Astros to their intrastate rivals.

After winning five of six on the road to draw within a game of Baltimore for the second wild card, the Astros started a four-game series against an Angels squad they'd beaten 11 of 12 times coming in. Yet the Angels won the first three games of the series, with the Astros' bullpen completely imploding during the eighth and ninth inning in dropping the second and third games. It was the worst-case scenario in a must-win series with the playoffs on the line.

Sitting 3 1/2 games back of the second American League wild card with five games left in the season, the Astros' chances of returning to the postseason are pretty bleak.

Going 1-4 so far in their current homestand certainly has hurt their cause.

But a Major League Baseball season is 162 games long, and each count equally. Last year, the Astros took advantage of a hot start and needed every bit of that cushion to make the playoffs at season's end.

This year, they stumbled early and have had their ups and downs.

How did they get to this point? Click through the gallery above to see some of the losses that have been their most painful this season.